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Charter!and!Bylaws!
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Academic!Council!!
of!!
Western!Kentucky!University
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CHARTER
ACADEMIC COUNCIL
OF
WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY
I.
PREAMBLE
In a collegial system, authority and responsibilities are shared among colleagues, some
of whom have duties as faculty and others as administrators. The Statement on
Government of Colleges and Universities, jointly formulated by the American
Association of University Professors, the American Council on Education, and the
Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges (as adopted by the
AAUP in 1966 and revised in 1990), outlines general principles governing the
respective roles of governing boards, faculties, and administrators. In accord with the
general principles outlined in this document, Western Kentucky University subscribes
to the goal of a system of governance in which there are appropriately-shared
responsibilities and cooperative action.
This Charter sets forth a structure for the Academic Council through which the faculty,
administrators, and students of Western Kentucky University can exercise their
collegial responsibility for the mission of the University. Every constituent shall have
the opportunity to participate in this mission – either directly by serving on the
Academic Council or indirectly by electing colleagues as representatives to the
Academic Council.
II.
FUNCTION
1. The Academic Council (hereafter “Council”) is charged with ensuring high
academic quality and standards throughout the University. To achieve this goal,
the Council
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a. provides oversight on all academic policies, programs, procedures, and
standards for the entire University.
b. makes recommendations to the Provost on these matters.
2. General areas under the purview of the Council include
a. courses and academic programs; i.e., majors, minors, certificates, tracks, and
any other grouping of courses.
b. university level academic policies, requirements, and regulations.
c. long-range academic goals, plans, and objectives of the University.
3. The Council reviews proposals and initiatives brought to it from duly established
college curriculum committees; it provides advice to other committees, councils,
or individual administrators on all matters relating to academic quality and
standards; it may refer to committees, councils, or individual administrators
assignments that are relevant to the academic issues within its purview; and it
may initiate its own discussions and studies on any issue that affects the academic
mission of the University.
III.
COMPOSITION
A. Elected Membership (voting)
1. Representatives
Each department in the University (herein “department” is defined as any
tenure-granting unit) will elect one representative and one alternate
representative. Full-time faculty members, excepting those with appointments
as department head or above, who have completed one year of full-time
service at WKU are eligible to be representatives or alternate representatives
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of the Council. The alternate shall have the full rights and privileges of an
elected representative when substituting for a regular representative.
2. At-large Representatives
a. The number of representatives for a college and the WKU Libraries
(hereafter the WKU Libraries is designated as a “college”) shall be no
fewer than one representative for each department within that college.
b.
Each college shall elect at-large representatives so that the total of the
representatives from departments within the college and at-large
representatives of that college is equal to eight percent (8%) of the total
college full-time faculty, rounded to the nearest whole number. If the
number of representatives from departments within a college exceeds 8%
of the college full-time faculty, that college shall have no at-large
representatives.
c. To maintain this proportional representation, the number of at-large
representatives to which each college is entitled will be calculated anew
on February 1 of each calendar year.
d. Each college shall elect one alternate representative to serve temporarily
when the at-large college representative is unable to serve. The alternate at
– large representative shall have the full rights and privileges of an elected
at – large representative when serving for a regular at – large
representative.
e. Full-time faculty members, excepting those with executive administrative
appointments (including acting or interim appointments), who have
completed one year of service at WKU are eligible to be at-large or
alternate at-large representatives of the Council.
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3. Student Representatives
The Student Government Association, and the Graduate School in
consultation with any designated graduate student organization, will each
appoint one student representative and one alternate student representative.
B. Instructional Council (non-voting)
The Instructional Council serves in an advisory position to both the Provost and
the Academic Council. Members of the Instructional Council will have the right
to attend meetings of, and to address, the Academic Council but will not have the
right to vote. Members of the Instructional Council will be appointed by the
Provost and must include
1. the Provost or a representative of the Provost’s Office.
2. a college representative appointed by the dean of that college.
3. a representative from the Professional Education Committee appointed by the
chair of that committee.
4. a representative of the Graduate School appointed by the dean.
5. the Registrar or the Registrar’s designee.
C. Term of Membership
1. Faculty Members
The term of membership for faculty members will be three (3) years, with
one-third of the faculty membership rotating each year. A faculty member
may be elected for consecutive terms and there are no term limits on
eligibility for membership.
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2. Student Members
The term of membership for student members shall be one year. Student
members may succeed themselves only once.
D. Vacancies
1. If a voting member of the Council is absent without alternate representation
from two regularly scheduled meetings during an academic year, or becomes
ineligible to serve due to an extended absence from the University or to a
change in appointment, the Chair may declare the member’s position vacant.
2. Such vacancies shall be filled only for the unexpired term.
IV.
OFFICERS
The Council shall elect a Chair and Vice-Chair from among its elected faculty
members. The term for all officers will be one academic year. There are no term
limits on holding office.
V.
COMMITTEES
The Academic Council shall establish standing committees to have initial jurisdiction
over its various functions. The Executive Committee shall be composed of the Chair,
Vice-Chair, Chairs of the other standing committees, and advisory members of the
Instructional Council. The Council may also establish ad hoc committees as needed to
address issues outside the purview of the standing committees that impact the
academic mission of the University.
VI.
MEETINGS
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The Academic Council shall meet in accordance with its Bylaws. Voting will be by a
simple majority. A quorum for business shall be at least one-half of the voting
membership.
VII.
AGENDA
All matters that fall under the purview of Academic Council must be submitted for
review by the Council and shall not be considered complete without Council action.
VIII.
REVIEW OF ACADEMIC COUNCIL RECOMMENDATIONS
The Provost shall review all recommendations of the Academic Council.
1. If the Provost approves a recommendation, it shall become part of the policy
of the University.
2. If the Provost does not approve a Council recommendation, the Provost shall
provide written reasons for such to the Council.
3. If the Provost desires changes in any recommendation of the Council, the
proposed changes must be submitted to the Council.
IX.
AMENDMENT OF THE CHARTER
Any full-time member of the faculty may propose an amendment to the Charter of the
Academic Council. After review and approval by the Executive Committee, the
proposed amendment will be added to the Council agenda. Council approval of
proposed amendments will require two readings and the vote of two thirds of the
voting members present. Upon approval by the Council, the recommended changes
shall be forwarded to the Senate for review and subsequent action.
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BYLAWS
ACADEMIC COUNCIL
OF
WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY
I.
THE MEMBERSHIP
A. Composition
1. In accordance with the Charter of the Academic Council, the voting
membership will include elected departmental representatives, at – large
representatives from each college, and undergraduate and graduate student
representatives. The non-voting membership will include members of the
Instructional Council and the Faculty Governance Administrative Assistant.
2. Faculty members who hold appointments in more than one college and/or
department will be counted as a member of the department and college in
which the majority of their time is assigned. If a faculty member is assigned
equally between departments and/or colleges, the faculty member will be
asked to select the unit for which the appointment will count for Council
eligibility purposes.
B. The Officers and Their Functions
1. The Academic Council shall have a Chair and Vice-Chair elected annually by
the membership of the University Senate at the April Senate meeting.
2. The Chair shall
a. conduct the meetings of the Academic Council and serve as the chair of
the Executive Committee.
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b. set the time and place of regular meetings.
c. assign issues to the appropriate committee for study and possible action
with the assistance of the Faculty Governance Administrative Assistant
(hereafter referred to as administrative assistant).
d. determine, in consultation with the Executive Committee, whether issues
to be presented to the Council constitute substantive matters that require a
second reading.
e. serve as the Academic Council liaison to the University Senate and the
Provost.
f. respond to requests from the President and Provost for the formation of ad
hoc committees to study particular issues or to recommend faculty
members to serve on a university committee.
g. make recommendations to the Council concerning rules and standards,
proposed amendments, and procedural changes.
h. address other matters as deemed appropriate by the Council.
3. The Vice Chair shall perform all the duties of the Chair in the absence of the
Chair. Additionally, the Vice Chair is responsible for organizing elections
conducted by the Council.
4. The officers of the Academic Council shall serve in their respective positions
for a period of one year or until successors are elected. They shall be eligible
for reelection.
5. The terms of the Chair and Vice-Chair shall begin on August 1st.
6. The officers of the Council may be removed for cause, following the
guidelines established in the most recent edition of Sturgis’ The Standard
Code of Parliamentary Procedure.
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C. The Faculty Governance Administrative Assistant and Parliamentarian
1. The Faculty Governance Administrative Assistant shall serve under the direction
of the Chair of the Academic Council and shall be responsible for providing
support for all the day-to-day business of the Council. The duties of the Faculty
Governance Administrative Assistant will be carried out by a staff member in the
Office of Academic Affairs.
These duties will include
a. keeping minutes of all Council meetings, and making the minutes
available to members of the Council and the entire faculty by posting them
on the Council Website within five workdays.
b. keeping a list of the current Council membership, including the names of
departmental representatives and alternates and at – large representatives
and alternates along with their term expiration dates.
c. keeping a record of attendance at public meetings of the Council.
d. keeping minutes of the meetings of the Executive Committee.
e. maintaining communication with representatives of each college’s Dean’s
office to ensure that all proposals to be considered by the Academic
Council meet the Council’s rules and standards.
f. conducting a preliminary review of proposals submitted to the Council to
ensure compliance with the Council’s rules and standards and return
proposals that are incomplete or non-compliant to the college
representative.
g. maintaining communication and cooperation with the Council’s Chair
regarding the routing of proposals to appropriate Council Standing
Committees.
h. assisting the Chair in preparing the Academic Council meeting agendas.
i. maintaining the Academic Council website, which shall contain the list of
the current Council membership with term expiration dates, standing
committee membership, the Academic Council Charter and Bylaws, the
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current month’s meeting agenda, and past meeting minutes.
j. announcing meetings to the Council membership.
k. coordinating the election and caucus schedules, including the certification
of eligible faculty and students.
2. The Parliamentarian, who need not be a member of the Academic Council,
will be appointed by the Executive Committee and will ensure that meetings
are conducted according to standard parliamentary procedure. If an issue of
procedure arises, the role of the Parliamentarian is to advise the Chair and
Vice Chair of the Council as to the recommended resolution of the issue to
move the meeting forward.
D. Elections
1. Any person eligible to serve as a representative is eligible to participate in the
election of representatives to the Academic Council.
2. Under the direction of the Vice Chair, assisted by the Faculty Governance
Administrative Assistant, departments shall hold elections for representatives.
In February of the election year, each department shall elect a representative
and an alternate representative. Elections shall be completed and the results
reported to the College Dean and the Vice-Chair of the Council by March 31st.
3. Under the direction of the Vice-Chair, assisted by the Faculty Governance
Administrative Assistant, Colleges shall hold elections for at-large
representatives and alternates. The number of at-large representatives elected
shall be based upon the current faculty numbers in each College per the
representation requirements set forth in the Charter. In February of the
election year, each department in the college may nominate up to three faculty
members to a pool from which its college’s at-large representatives and
alternates shall be chosen. The list of nominees for each college shall be
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published online and faculty within the college shall vote by electronic ballot,
with the ballot being available for three days. Elections shall be completed
and the results reported to the College Dean and the Vice-Chair of the Council
by March 31st. Each eligible voter shall be permitted to vote for as many
persons as positions being filled. Those with the highest number of votes
shall be declared elected at – large representatives. In the event of a tie, a
drawing to determine the winner shall be conducted by the Vice-Chair. The
runners-up shall be placed in a pool hereafter called the At – Large Alternate
Representative Pool. Alternate at – large representatives will be selected from
this pool to attend the Senate meeting upon a planned absence of the elected at
– large representative and replacements for at – large representatives will be
selected from this pool when vacancies occur. In the latter case, the person
with the highest number of votes shall be selected. The Alternate At – Large
Representative Pool will be updated each time an election for at – large
representatives occurs.
4. At the April Council meeting, the Chair shall hold a caucus of the
representatives elected to serve the following academic year to determine
membership on each of the Council standing committees. With the exception
of the Executive Committee, each standing committee must have at least one
representative from each college. In the event a college does not have enough
elected representatives to serve on the standing committees of the Council, the
elected representatives may appoint additional faculty members to fill the
remaining committees or the elected representatives may serve on more than
one standing committee.
5. If a departmental representative resigns, the alternate shall replace the
resigning representative and the department will hold an election to replace
the former alternate. If an at-large representative resigns, the individual with
the highest number of votes in the college’s Alternate At – Large
Representative Pool shall replace the resigning representative.
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6. If a representative is absent from two regularly scheduled Council meetings
during an academic year without alternate representation, the Chair may
declare the position vacant. If a departmental position is declared vacant, the
department shall hold an election for a new representative and alternate. The
Vice Chair of the Academic Council shall keep a complete record of the votes
for at-large representatives for each college. If the position of an at-large
representative in a college is declared vacant, the next eligible person in the
Alternate At – Large Pool of that college shall become the at – large
representative. If the pool is exhausted, the college will determine the
mechanism for choosing a replacement for the vacant position.
E. Term of Office
Each elected representative shall serve for a term of three years beginning August
1 of the first year and ending July 31 of the third year, with the exception of the
Student Government representatives. Members shall be eligible for reelection for
consecutive terms without term limits.
The election of Academic Council members shall be staggered such that no more
than one-third of the AC membership changes at any one time. Initially, members
will be randomly assigned to serve two, three, or four years. Thereafter, the
Council membership shall be for a term of three years.
II.
MEETINGS AND RULES OF PROCEDURE
A. The Academic Council shall use email as the official means of communication
with its membership.
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B. The Academic Council shall have an official website. The Faculty Governance
Administrative Assistant shall be responsible for maintenance of the website
under the direction of the Chair, Vice Chair, and the chairs of senate committees.
The website shall, at a minimum, contain
1. a list of the current Council membership, including the names of departmental
representatives and alternates and at – large representatives and alternates
along with their term expiration dates.
2. a list of the current Council standing committee membership.
3. the Charter of the Academic Council.
4. the current month meeting agenda.
5. past meeting minutes.
C. The Academic Council shall meet once a month during the academic year unless
the frequency of meetings is changed by a vote of the Council. The date, time,
and place of the meetings are to be determined by the Chair of the Council at the
beginning of each academic year.
D. The agenda, committee reports and/or resolutions to be considered by the Council
shall be posted on the website with notice to the membership at least seven days
prior to the meeting.
E. The Chair may call a special meeting with the concurrence of the majority of the
voting members of the Executive Committee. The Chair must call a special
meeting in a timely fashion upon the written request of at least ten members of the
Academic Council or upon the request of the Provost.
F. If a departmental representative and departmental alternate representative cannot
attend a Council meeting, the departmental representative can send any member
of the department to the Council meeting. If the at – large representative and at –
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large alternate representative cannot attend a Council meeting, the at – large
representative can send any person in the college at - large pool.
G. A quorum of the Academic Council shall be a majority of the voting membership.
Business conducted up to the point that an absence of a quorum is established and
announced by the chair is assumed to have been conducted with a quorum
present.
H. Any representative may make a motion from the floor, which if seconded, shall be
addressed by the Council.
I. The Academic Council shall use the most recent edition of Sturgis’ The Standard
Code of Parliamentary Procedure to govern its meetings.
J. All meetings of the Academic Council shall be open to all members of the faculty
and other interested parties. Visitors shall be permitted to address the Council at
the discretion of the Chair.
K. A vote by the Academic Council or a Council Standing Committee may be
conducted electronically. The conditions and requirements for conducting an
electronic vote for the full Council shall be specified by the Executive Committee
and those for a Council Standing Committee shall be specified by the Standing
Committee.
III.
STANDING COMMITTEES OF THE ACADEMIC COUNCIL
The standing committees of the Council are the Executive Committee, the
Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, the General Education Committee, and the
Graduate Curriculum Committee. Every member of the Council shall be a member of
a standing committee. The composition and duties of the standing committees are as
follows:
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A. The Executive Committee
The Academic Council Executive Committee, hereafter ACEC, shall be
composed of the Chair, Vice-Chair, Chairs of the other standing committees, and
Provost or Provost’s representative. The ACEC may be called to meeting by the
Chair as needed.
The functions of the ACEC shall be
1. to construct the Academic Council calendar containing deadlines for
submission of Standing Committee reports to the Chair of the Council and
dates of regularly scheduled Standing Committee and Academic Council
meetings.
2. to provide advice to the Chair of the Academic Council on whether issues to
be presented to the Council constitute substantive matters that require a
second reading.
3. to meet with the Executive Committee of the University Senate to integrate
recommendations on matters of concern to both bodies.
B. The Undergraduate Curriculum Committee
The Undergraduate Curriculum Committee (UCC) shall have two types of
responsibilities: 1) to review particular undergraduate programs and courses to
determine whether they meet established standards and 2) to review and make
proposals to the Academic Council concerning university-wide undergraduate
academic policies. University-wide undergraduate academic policies include such
matters as admission requirements, undergraduate degree and graduation
requirements, and all similar matters that have application or significance beyond
a single college.
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The functions of the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee shall be
1. to review existing undergraduate programs and new program proposals in
light of the university's mission statement.
2. to review any undergraduate academic matters such as degree and graduation
requirements, standards of scholastic achievement, rules and regulations
governing faculty-student relations.
3. to review existing undergraduate courses and new courses having significant
consequences that cross college lines.
4. to study any undergraduate curricular matter it chooses.
5. to study undergraduate matters assigned to it by the Chair of the Academic
Council.
The Undergraduate Curriculum Committee shall include at least one Council
representative from each college and the SGA, as many additional members as
self-allocated during the Council caucus, and an advisory member appointed by
the chair of the Professional Education Committee.
The Undergraduate Curriculum Committee shall review and consider proposals
routed to it by the Chair of the Council and shall provide its comments,
suggestions, and recommendations regarding each proposal in a report to the
Council. As part of the review process, the UCC shall consult with other standing
committees of the Council as appropriate. The UCC may also initiate study of
other issues relating to the undergraduate curriculum or academic policy and
address these issues in a report to the Council.
The Undergraduate Curriculum Committee shall place items forwarded by the
Chair of the Academic Council on its agenda. In his/her report to the committee,
the UCC Chair shall inform the members of all information items submitted by
the college curriculum committees. (See Appendix for a definition of
“information item.”) All consent items submitted by the college curriculum
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committees shall be placed on the consent agenda. (See Appendix for a definition
of “consent item.”) All action items submitted by the college curriculum
committees shall be placed on the action agenda. (See Appendix for a definition
of “action item.”). Any member of the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee
shall have the option of removing a consent item from the consent agenda and
placing it on the action agenda for regular review. The Chair of the UCC shall
submit a report setting forth these consent and action items and its
recommendations to the Chair of the Academic Council by the date set forth in
the Academic Council calendar. Recommendations to reject a proposal must
include a rationale for this decision. Upon Council approval, the report shall be
forwarded as a recommendation to the Provost.
It is not the role or responsibility of the Chair of the Undergraduate Curriculum
Committee or the Committee membership to edit proposals for grammar and
formatting. The college curriculum committees shall be responsible for ensuring
that proposals are free from grammatical errors and follow the formats and
guidelines established by the UCC. The Faculty Governance Administrative
Assistant will review all submitted proposals and those that require substantial
editing will be returned to the proponent. UCC proposal guidelines and forms can
be found online at: www.wku.edu/ucc.
C. The General Education Committee
The General Education Committee (GEC) shall function as the faculty review
body to make recommendations regarding matters pertaining to general education.
The GEC shall have two types of responsibilities: 1) to make proposals to the
Academic Council concerning the structure, content, and assessment of general
education, and 2) to review courses proposed for general education to determine
whether they meet established standards.
The functions of the General Education Committee shall be
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1. to develop and review general education guidelines, performance standards,
and course criteria.
2. to review existing courses and to consider new courses proposed for general
education.
3. to engage in a continuing evaluation of the effectiveness of the general
education program.
4. to study all matters it chooses pertaining to general education.
5. to study matters assigned to it by the Chair of the Academic Council.
The General Education Committee shall include at least one Academic Council
member from each college and as many additional members as self-allocated
during the Council caucus.
The General Education Committee shall review and consider proposals routed to
it by the Chair of the Council and shall include its comments, suggestions and
recommendations regarding each proposal in a written report to the Council. As
part of the review process, the GEC shall consult with other standing committees
as appropriate. The GEC may also initiate study of other issues relating to the
general education curriculum or academic policy and address these issues in a
report to the Council.
The oversight of the general education program includes such matters as
establishing standards for general education and monitoring the effectiveness of
general education. Proposals concerning such matters shall be submitted to the
Academic Council for approval. The General Education Committee shall also
review all course proposals submitted by college curriculum committees for
general education credit. The Chair of the General Education Committee shall
submit a report setting forth consent and action items and its recommendations to
the Chair of the Academic Council by the date set forth in the Academic Council
calendar. Recommendations to reject a proposal must include a rationale for this
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decision. Upon Council approval, the report shall be forwarded as a
recommendation to the Provost.
D. The Graduate Curriculum Committee
The Graduate Curriculum Committee (GCC) shall review particular graduate
programs and courses to determine whether they meet established standards.
The functions of the Graduate Curriculum Committee shall be
1. to receive, review, and act upon academic course and program proposals
being submitted through the approval process.
2. to review existing graduate courses and new courses having significant
consequences that cross college lines.
3. to study any graduate curricular matter it chooses.
4. to study graduate matters assigned to it by the Chair of the Academic Council.
The Graduate Curriculum Committee shall include at least one Council member
from each college and as many additional members as self-allocated per the
Council caucus. All faculty on the GCC must hold graduate faculty status.
Advisory members will include the dean of the Graduate School or his
representative and a member appointed by the chair of the Professional Education
Committee.
The GCC shall review and consider proposals routed to it by the Chair of the
Academic Council and shall include its comments, suggestions, and
recommendations regarding each proposal in a written report to the Council. As
part of the review process, the GCC shall consult with other standing committees
of the Council as appropriate. The GCC may also initiate study of other issues
relating to the graduate curriculum or academic policy and include these issues on
its written report to the Council.
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The Graduate Curriculum Committee shall place items forwarded by the Chair of
the Academic Council on its agenda. In his/her report to the committee, the GCC
Chair shall inform the members of all information items submitted by the college
curriculum committees. All consent items submitted by the college curriculum
committees shall be placed on the consent agenda. All action items submitted by
the college curriculum committees shall be placed on the action agenda. Any
member of the GCC shall have the option of removing a consent item from the
consent agenda and placing it on the action agenda for regular review. The Chair
of the GCC shall submit a report setting forth the consent and action items and its
recommendations to the Chair of the Academic Council by the date set forth in
the Academic Council calendar. Recommendations to reject a proposal must
include a rationale for this decision. Upon Council approval, the report shall be
forwarded as a recommendation to the Provost.
IV.
RULES OF THE STANDING COMMITTEES
A. Meetings: Standing committees shall meet at least once each month during the
academic year. Special meetings may be called by the committee chair upon the
request of a majority of the committee members. The day, time, and place of all
meetings shall be published so that interested parties may attend a committee
meeting. Visitors shall be permitted to address the committee at the discretion of
the committee chair.
B. Quorum: A quorum shall consist of a simple majority of voting members of the
committee.
C. Voting Requirements: A simple majority of the quorum is required for a legal
vote.
D. Officers: Each committee, except the Executive Committee, shall elect its own
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Chair.
E. The Chairs of all standing committees shall be members of the Academic Council
and shall serve on the Executive Committee during their term as Chair.
F. Advisory members of committees who are not members of the Academic Council
shall have the right to speak on the floor of the Council when matters related to
their committee are being debated, but they shall not have voting rights. In
committee sessions, they shall have the same rights as Council-elected members
of the committee.
V.
AD HOC COMMITTEES
The Chair of the Academic Council, in consultation with the Executive
Committee, shall have the right to appoint an ad hoc committee in response to an
identified need or to an administrative request. The composition of such a
committee shall be determined by the situation. Where appropriate, the rules for
Standing Committees shall govern the organization and operation of an ad hoc
committee. An ad hoc committee shall be disbanded after it has completed its
investigation and reported its findings to the Academic Council.
VI.
ACADEMIC COUNCIL PROPOSAL PROCESS
A. Process Outline
1. Course, program and/or academic policy proposals are created according to
the most current Academic Council Guidelines, which are posted on the
Council website. Course and program proposals are approved by appropriate
department and college curriculum committees and are then forwarded
electronically by the designated college representative to the Faculty
Governance Administrative Assistant. Each new course and program proposal
must be accompanied by a resource affidavit to be completed by the college
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dean on a form provided by the Academic Council and posted on the
Council’s website. New program proposals must also be submitted to the CPE
for posting in cooperation with the Office of Academic Affairs. All other
proposals not requiring college approval may be forwarded electronically by
the proponent to the Administrative Assistant.
2. The Faculty Governance Administrative Assistant reviews each proposal for
compliance with Academic Council Guidelines. Non-compliant proposals are
returned automatically to the designated college representative. Compliant
proposals and resource affidavits are forwarded electronically to the Chair of
the Council for review and routing to (1) the Instructional Council; (2) one or
more of the Academic Council Standing Committees, as appropriate; and (3)
for proposals concerning university – wide policies that have implications for
tenure and promotion or work life, to the Chair of the University Senate. At
this time, the Administrative Assistant also posts a Master Copy of each
proposal on the Council website for the purpose of editing, comment, and
recommendation by the Instructional Council and other Standing Committees.
3. The Chair of each Academic Council Standing Committee prepares an agenda
for that Committee’s public meeting that is posted on the Council’s website at
least one week prior to the meeting date. Each proposal proponent must be
present at the Standing Committee’s public meeting. After the conclusion of
its public meeting, the Chair of the Standing Committee submits the
Committee’s edits and comments to the Master Copy of each proposal and the
Faculty Governance Administrative Assistant notifies any other committees
reviewing the proposal that changes have been made. The Chair also submits
a report to the Chair of the Council containing its recommendations for each
proposal.
4. The Chair of the Academic Council reviews the Master Copy of each proposal
as well as the Instructional Council and Standing Committee
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recommendations. For new program proposals, the Chair inquires as to the
status of the CPE posting. If a proposal receives conflicting committee
recommendations, this conflict will be addressed at the meeting of the
Executive Committee. The Chair will invite the proposal’s proponent to
attend this meeting and if there is no resolution of the conflict, the proposal
will be returned to the college for revision. Recommendations for proposals
reviewed by a single committee that are not supported by the Executive
Committee will go to the full Council without the endorsement of the
Executive Committee.
5. The Chair prepares an agenda for the public meeting of the Academic
Council, which is posted on the Council’s website at least one week prior to
the meeting date. The departmental representative from a college that
originates a proposal should be prepared to address any questions or concerns
about the proposal that are raised by the Council at its public meeting. If the
departmental representative does not feel capable in this regard, he/she must
ensure that the proposal proponent be present at this public meeting.
6. The Chair of the Academic Council prepares and submits electronically a
report of its public meeting with recommendations for each proposal to the
Provost and posts the report on the Council’s website.
7. The Provost reviews all recommendations of the Academic Council and
provides a response within 30 days. Recommendations approved by the
Provost become part of the policy of the University. If the Provost does not
approve a Council recommendation, the Provost provides written reasons for
such to the Council. If the Provost desires changes in any recommendation of
the Council, the proposed changes are submitted to the Council.
B. Academic Council Proposal Process Diagram
The proposal process outlined above is outlined by the diagram attached hereto and
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incorporated herein as Figure 1.
C. Academic Council Proposal Guidelines
The procedures for proposal routing and formats, types and formats of agenda items,
deadlines, and other procedures not specified herein but deemed necessary for
carrying out the mission of the Academic Council as defined in these Bylaws shall be
governed by the Academic Council Guidelines, which shall be posted on the Council
website.
VII.
AMENDMENTS
1. Amendments to the Bylaws of the Academic Council require two readings
and a 2/3 majority vote.
2. Amendments to the Guidelines, proposals formats, forms, and operation
procedures require a simple majority vote.
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APPENDIX
ACTION ITEMS
Proposals that have significant implications for departments in other colleges shall be
forwarded to the Academic Council as action items. Proposals with significant
implications for departments in other colleges include the following: new programs
(majors, minors, certificate programs), significant changes in a program, new courses,
multiple changes to existing courses, changes in course credit hours, changes in course
numbers with changes in level (e.g. PSY 342 becomes PSY 453), multiple offerings of
“one-time only” courses, and academic policies and regulations.
CONSENT ITEMS
Proposals that do not have significant implications beyond a college shall be
forwarded to the Academic Council as consent items. Proposals that do not have
significant implications for programs in other colleges typically include the following:
proposals to change program (majors, minors, certificate programs) titles, replace an
intradepartmental course in a program with another, delete programs, suspend programs,
change course titles, change course catalog descriptions (as long as the course content is
not changed), change course numbers without changing level (e.g. PSY 342 becomes
PSY 353), change course prerequisites, or create community college equivalent courses.
Any member of the Academic Council shall have the right to remove a proposal from the
list of consent items and place it on the list of action items. If this is occurs during the
regularly scheduled meeting of the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee or the
Graduate Curriculum Committee, the committee may postpone review of the item until
its next meeting.
INFORMATION ITEMS
One-time only course offerings and proposals to change course prefixes shall be
forwarded to the Academic Council as information items.
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FIGURE 1
Academic Council
Executive Committee
Instructional
Council
Graduate
Curriculum Committee
Undergraduate
Curriculum Committee
General Education
Curriculum Committee
(All proposals)
(All graduate course, program,
and policy proposals,
including those related to
teacher certification programs)
(All undergraduate course,
program, and policy
proposals, including those
related to teacher certification
programs)
(All general education course,
program, and
policy proposals)
Academic Council
(All proposals)
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